There are several different limitation and conditions that can be added to a PCO licence but today we will focus on the TA conditions as we do get a lot of questions about these.
What does TA stand for? Since the introduction of the English Language Requirement (ELR), TfL have also created new licence conditions called TA - Transitional Arrangements.
There are currently 4 TA conditions (TA1,TA2,TA3,TA4).
We will explain what they mean and how can they affect your licence below:
TA1 – Transitional Arrangement 1If you are an existing Private Hire Driver in London who did not provide any evidence for the ELR - English Language Requirement by 30/09/2021 you fall into TA1.
This means you only have until 30/09/2023 to sit and pass the SERU and English Speaking & Listening assessments.
TA2 – Transitional Arrangement 2Drivers who did provide evidence for the ELR English Language Requirement by 30/09/2021 fall into TA2.
This means your evidence is still being reviewed by TfL and it will have one of the following outcomes:
Satisfactory
You will not be required to take the Speaking & Listening assessment with TfL however you will still be required to pass the SERU assessment by 31/03/2025.
Unsatisfactory
This means your ELR evidence was not accepted and you will be required to take and pass both the English Language Speaking & Listening and SERU assessments by 30/09/2024.
TA3 – Transitional Arrangement 3If you applied for a PHV driver's licence on or after 01/10/2021 - you fall into TA3. This means that you were not required to pass any ELR - English language Requirement assessments before your licence was issued. However you will need to complete both SERU and Speaking & Listening assessments by 30/09/2024.
TA3 only applies to drivers who applied between 01/10/2021 and 31/03/2023. Anyone who applied from 01/04/2023 onwards is required to sit and pass both the SERU and Speaking & Listening assessments before a licence can be issued.
TA4 – Transitional Arrangement 4Anyone who applies for a PHV Driver's licence from 01/04/2023 onwards falls under TA4.
This means you must take and pass both SERU and Speaking & Listening assessments before TfL issues your licence.
It is very important to be aware which of the transitional arrangements affect your licence so that you can make sure that you pass all required assessments before the deadline.
If you fail to pass any of the required exams you may be unable to work or even lose your PCO licence.
The next Transitional Arrangement date is 30/09/2023 - so if you haven't provided any ELR evidence you will be invited by TfL to take the SERU and Speaking & Listening assessments before this date.
